Several attendees at tonight's forum on the state's new concealed carry law say the event was informative and not anti-gun as they were led to believe through messages posted on social media.Stephanie Butler of Poplar Grove, a member of the Well Armed Woman, said she other members of her group came to the panel discussion ready to defend their rights to bear arms based on what they read earlier today."It was advertised that it was going to be anti-gun or against concealed carry," Butler said.The Illinois State Rifle Association posted on its Facebook page this morning that "gun grabbers" were holding a forum on concealed carry in Rockford and that supporters of concealed carry needed to be there "to save your guns." The post, which was shared with various gun owners and enthusiasts in the area, encouraged members to attend the meeting and "vigorously defend your gun rights."

This came as a big surprise to the event's organizers -- the League of Women Voters of Greater Rockford and the YWCA of Rockford -- who said that was not the intent of forum."This is an educational forum so people can come out and learn about the new law that's coming into effect," said League President Ann Dempsey. "The mission of the league is not pro or con."I made sure to ask several people as they were leaving the event if they heard anything tonight that caused them concern. They all said the forum was not what they expected based on the rifle association's Facebook post."I was pleasantly surprised," Butler said. "It was very informative."There were about 100 people at the forum and a lot of them were men. That's kind of unusual for a League of Women Voters and YWCA event. Nearly everyone stayed for the entire hour and a half long discussion.The panelists reviewed the new law, spoke about the legal ramifications and discussed the impact they think it will have on crime and local businesses.Bob Janzen of Rockford shared in Butler's surprise regarding the forum's tone."I thought this was going to be a lot more of an anti-concealed carry meeting," he said. "I was shocked to find out it was just a generally informative meeting. ... I've been to a bunch of these already, but this was a good one. It would have been a good one for someone who had never been to one before."